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Does it matter more if the fish is constantly eating the substrate like guppies, goldies etc?

Some fish do seem to get it more (livebearers etc) whereas for example tetras rarely and in catfish it would be really difficult to detect. Female guppies are really good as sentinel fish ie they show the worms better than other fish.

Most camallanus species require an intermediate host to be passed on, usually a crustacean. Although there is at least one species that can directly reinfect the fish. Therefor siphoning the bodies is probably not really necessary (unless you've got eh one species where it does matter)

Well, you wouldn't want to risk it. There are some nasty, resistant strains out there and given that it take months to have certainty of cure, you want to do the whole shebang. What would really be good is a PCR test to test the water, might be a market niche internationally. especially pet shops could check batches before they infect their floor stock.

I love it when you guys pop onto my thread and have these high end discussions. It is so educational. I've spoken with my top fish store people today and have been advised not to worry about worm treatment. They don't believe it is worms being the issue. They suggested a little aquarium salt, small water changes every couple of days and some more melafix, substrate change over incase substrate is infected with anything. Suggested to take some out of one of my larger tanks with good bio in it and use that. Its only a 20L tank I am working with for these changes. Here's hoping by doing this my siamese fighter will perk up again.

My sick fishy symptoms are:
arched back; lethargy; not eating; coming up for air but not food; swimming haphazardly when they do; not responding to melafix or multicure; white to clear stringy poo; eventually death.

I have never treated for worms so I figured maybe now is a good time to begin doing so on a regular basis as a standard maintenance. once a year or however regular it should be done.

Your fish have TB (tuberculosis) or another form of internal bacterial infection.
TB are a slow growing bacterium that invades a cell in the body of the fish. Over time (6-12months, sometimes more) the bacteria build up and eventually cause organ failure. The fish normally bloat up, stop eating, do stringy white poop and die. There is no cure for fish when this happens.

If you lose one fish every now and then to these symptoms then it is most likely TB. If you lose a large number of fish to these symptoms but in a short space of time (eg: 1 week) then it is another form of internal bacterial or protozoan infection. The TB can't be treated but in cases where you lose a lot of fish in a few days then medicated food can sometimes help. You would have to track down a source of fish food that has anti-biotics in. The commonly available medicated food is designed to treat goldfish ulcer disease.

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re: internal worms in fish. Camallanus and Capillaria (round or thread worms) are readily seen hanging out of a fish's bum and look like thin white or red (normally red from the blood they drink) worms sticking out a couple of mm of the fish's butt. Tapeworms (segmented worms) in fish do not normally stick out.
Praziquantel is used to treat tapeworm in cats & dogs and works on fish too. However, it does nothing to thread worms. Levamisole is recommended for them.

Worm infections in fish will normally cause the fish to lose weight and look skinny. However, if a fish is very heavily infested with worms, the fish will actually look fat like a pregnant guppy or molly. Worms do not normally kill fish quickly if at all. It is not in the best interests of the worms to kill their host because if the host fish dies, the parasites (worms) die.

Having said all this most fish bought from aquarium shops have worms and either have TB or have been exposed to TB in the tanks at the shop, wholesaler or fish farms. Worms and TB are extremely common and virtually every aquarium shop in the world has it in their tanks.

Aquariums are a soup of micro-organism including bacteria, protozoans, fungus, viruses and other things. Aquarium fish are pretty tough considering what they live in.

Your fish have TB (tuberculosis) or another form of internal bacterial infection.
TB are a slow growing bacterium that invades a cell in the body of the fish. Over time (6-12months, sometimes more) the bacteria build up and eventually cause organ failure. The fish normally bloat up, stop eating, do stringy white poop and die. There is no cure for fish when this happens.

If you lose one fish every now and then to these symptoms then it is most likely TB. If you lose a large number of fish to these symptoms but in a short space of time (eg: 1 week) then it is another form of internal bacterial or protozoan infection. The TB can't be treated but in cases where you lose a lot of fish in a few days then medicated food can sometimes help. You would have to track down a source of fish food that has anti-biotics in. The commonly available medicated food is designed to treat goldfish ulcer disease.

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re: internal worms in fish. Camallanus and Capillaria (round or thread worms) are readily seen hanging out of a fish's bum and look like thin white or red (normally red from the blood they drink) worms sticking out a couple of mm of the fish's butt. Tapeworms (segmented worms) in fish do not normally stick out.
Praziquantel is used to treat tapeworm in cats & dogs and works on fish too. However, it does nothing to thread worms. Levamisole is recommended for them.

Worm infections in fish will normally cause the fish to lose weight and look skinny. However, if a fish is very heavily infested with worms, the fish will actually look fat like a pregnant guppy or molly. Worms do not normally kill fish quickly if at all. It is not in the best interests of the worms to kill their host because if the host fish dies, the parasites (worms) die.

Having said all this most fish bought from aquarium shops have worms and either have TB or have been exposed to TB in the tanks at the shop, wholesaler or fish farms. Worms and TB are extremely common and virtually every aquarium shop in the world has it in their tanks.

Aquariums are a soup of micro-organism including bacteria, protozoans, fungus, viruses and other things. Aquarium fish are pretty tough considering what they live in.

That sounds awfully easy but it's not. I can say for a fact that nematodes are not always readily seen hanging out of a fish's bum. If you have a heavy infestation in the right fish, yes. A single one in a male guppy, difficult. A catfish, very difficult. And they don't always hang out. I had a macmasteri wasting away, no worms visible. With Kusuri, readily visible, I didn't expect it since I am on the lookout for camallanus constantly. Just used Kusuri on the off chance it might be a tapeworm or something.

My siamese fighter is still hanging in there. swimming only when he has to. not eating.

Well... The fact that it has now been since Australia Day I would have thought that not eating that whole time would have caused the fish to weaken further, deteriorate in condition and pass away.. But no..

To look at he is just a lazy fish all of a sudden. At least he is swimming straight and not on his side since the first treatment weeks ago. Surely he must be eating to be still alive.

Apart from just sitting around on the substrate he looks healthy enough but seems to have lost total interest in everything and startles easy. I continue to drop a few pellets in there for him every day on the off chance he wants to eat or eats when we are not around.

Unlike mammals and most terrestrial animals, fish don't need to eat to stay warm. With mammals and birds, etc, we eat food to keep our body temperatures stabile and to grow and move about. Most of what we eat is simply used to keep us warm. Fish on the other hand, take their body temperature from the surrounding water. This means the food they eat is used to grow and move about. A well fed fish can go for weeks or even months without eating purely because they do not need the food to keep warm.

Make sure you remove any uneaten food from the tank so it doesn't pollute the water.

I have 3 small bristlenose catfish in his tank so thankfully any food leftover is eaten up by them. I was not aware they could survive for months without eating. I sure hope he perks up and begins to eat again. I miss his inquisitive nature.